Kenyon College

Date: Mar 16 2017
Major: Undecided (This Major's Salary over time)
First, professors are incredibly knowledgeable, dedicated to their field, and enthusiastic about imparting what they know to their students, which is what will disappoint me most when I transfer. However, I've been less than impressed with most other aspects. I don't wish to turn this into a rant, but I feel that a lot of these things were shrouded from me before I enrolled and I'd like someone else to know about them beforehand.

? While professors are fantastic, at many points throughout the year I was wondering exactly how the material covered compared to other institutions. I was challenged much more in high school (overloaded schedule) and expected the same type of pace in college based on everyone constantly referring to it as so intense. This was not the case. In fact, there was comparatively much less academic stress and so little to be done outside of class that I went into mental shock (yes, literally) and found it hard to concentrate on anything, fearing that I had gone down a completely wrong path. Many people are absorbed in academics but, though I hate to sound haughty, don't have a lot to show for it, yet they hold themselves in very high esteem (and constantly talk about their past achievements, I don't know where this came from, honestly). This isn't to say there aren't mature, humble, and brilliant people?there are, but overall, this is the feeling I was left with.

? Please look at a map before choosing Kenyon. Gambier, OH is 15 minutes from Mt. Vernon, which is in turn 45-50 minutes from Columbus. This is completely rural. Unless you or your friend have a car, there is sometimes an hourly bus to Mt. Vernon, but otherwise you are stuck. As a result of such isolation, there are virtually NO attractions or events apart from sports, trail-running, or the occasional Amish sale. Mt Vernon is not really an escape either, though it has a few stores. You need to devote an entire weekend afternoon to restocking supplies at THE Walmart unless you want to pay exorbitant prices at the on-campus grocer. I had initially thought of college as being a large, fast-paced, cosmopolitan experience. 1800 sounds like a larger number than it truly is. If you choose Kenyon, you need to be comfortable with an isolated, bookish, subdued atmosphere.

? Diversity among students (ethnically) is minimal. There is a small community of Chinese students; there is also only one black male in the entire freshman class. Though a small portion of the class comes from disadvantaged backgrounds, by and large most students are from privileged white families (myself admittedly included), as reflected in the steep tuition. Good scores will get you a small scholarship, but this only brings it down to the price of any other private four-year institution. If it helps though, textbooks were surprisingly inexpensive.

When first starting college, I was under the impression that, as my parents especially wanted to make clear to me, most any place will give you a "wonderful" education. I don't feel this to be untrue, but will say that some places are more competitive for fair reasons and renowned for reasons as well. Kenyon is highly regarded as a literature school and has its strengths in English, language, sociology, and other humanities. That's not to say one cannot be a pre-med at Kenyon, there's plenty. But whether they truly have as much within their immediate reach as students at medium or larger universities, I'm not as sure. This is what all has motivated me to transfer; there are many people who are perfectly happy with the education and experience that they've had at Kenyon, but I'm not as strong a proponent.